Green Bay — Through the 0-4-1 November, reality hit the Green Bay Packers like a sledgehammer.

Mike McCarthy could no longer avoid mentioning Aaron Rodgers to his team. Multiple players admitted losing the quarterback "exposed" flaws on the roster. Very soon it became obvious the Packers were, indeed, overly reliant on No. 12.

Hey, that's not a bad thing. Sure beats the Dark Ages. Entire franchises endure 10, 15 years of putrid quarterback play. But if 2013 told us anything, it's that the Packers go only as far as Rodgers takes them.

And, don't blink, Rodgers is entering his seventh season as the Packers' starter.

So how long will he be this good — Super Bowl MVP good, league MVP good — before the shine starts to wear off? Two years? Three? Seven?

There's no hard-line theory. The quarterback's style of play is one factor. In Green Bay, the Packers should let Rodgers be Rodgers and cross their fingers.

Sustaining an All Pro level of play is not easy.

"It's really hard," said former NFL MVP Rich Gannon. "That's what's so amazing about Peyton Manning and Tom Brady. It's hard not to have a season where maybe there's a turnover spike a little bit or you lose your starting receiver, your starting running back or you have issues on the offensive line and your production falls off. Or maybe you play with a defense that's going through a transition.

"It's hard to have sustained success. It's not how the league is being built these days. That's why it's really incredible when you see a team that can maintain it — particularly an individual at that position — that can maintain it over a long period of time."

Seems like pitchfork-waving fans were just asking Ted Thompson to sign a "petition" to bring Brett Favre back. Suddenly, Rodgers is 30 years old. He's the longest-tenured Packer. His game is not eroding in the least bit. But the fractured collarbone was a sobering reminder of what can derail any quarterback. Injuries.

Manning and Brady have started a combined 27 pro seasons. When they were supposed to wither, supposed to ease into broadcasting careers, they led their teams to the AFC Championship Game.

"When you continue to do that," Gannon said, "then you're talking about a transformational player."

So here's the catch. One reason Manning and Brady are still throwing for 40-plus touchdowns is that they don't stray from the pocket. Under the NFL's bubble-boy rules, Manning doesn't absorb nearly as much abuse as Rodgers. As a Steve Young.

Manning has stood behind a stonewall offensive line and picked defenses apart with gazelles underneath.

Until Sunday night.

On sports' biggest stage, Manning's immobility played right into the meat grinder that is the Seattle Seahawks' defense. Mobility gives you a puncher's chance against such a vile, unrelenting front, be it Colin Kaepernick's stride or Rodgers extending a play.

So even as he gasped from the press box in Week 17 at Chicago when Rodgers scrambled, Thompson has to realize this.

Coaches shouldn't zap improvisation from Rodgers' game, shouldn't quarantine him in the pocket. His game-winner that day, after all, was part improv.

"He's going to play," Gannon said. "He has great escape ability, playmaking ability, creativity. His ability to use his legs is critical to his success. I think that'd be a mistake."

He'll slide more. He'll use more caution. But the quarterback who suffered two concussions (2010) and cracked his collarbone (2013) on the run could be in harm's way again. He's more apt to take off. And in half the career, Rodgers has been sacked nearly as much as Manning.

Year-in and year-out health may be Rodgers' greatest obstacle to longevity.

"Yeah, that's the only thing," Gannon said. "That could cut through anybody's career. I think the guy takes wonderfully good care of himself. Physically, he challenges himself every year to do something....He's ultracompetitive. He realizes that he's unique that way. I don't think he's content in just playing in one Super Bowl or being the league MVP and having a solid career.

"I think he wants to be the greatest at the position."

The closest parallel is Young. Granted, he took over a later age. But both quarterbacks waited behind legends. Both used their arm and legs. For Young, the hits accumulated. One Aeneas Williams corner blitz knocked him into retirement after eight full, Canton-worthy seasons as the starter.

Injuries forced Troy Aikman (12 seasons), Jim Kelly (11 seasons) and others out. Favre needed to be dragged off the field. John Elway went out on top. Even Gannon had his best seasons ages 34 to 37.

Case in point, nothing is guaranteed. The Packers have a quarterback in his prime. You let him operate.

Quarterback to quarterback, Gannon sees "no signs" of Rodgers slowing down. For several minutes, he raves about Rodgers' game. No quarterback in the shotgun, he insists, gets the ball out quicker from the grip to the rip than Rodgers. His preparation is off the charts. At the line of scrimmage, he has more freedom than ever.

Rodgers makes a defense defend "the entire field." All routes are in play. And as far as pure "arm talent," Gannon continues, no one is better.